Disclaimer: Max, Logan, and Zack aren't mine. Hannah, Aren, Taylor, Tanya, Lizz, Isobel, and Michael (Mike) are. So don't sue me for using the originals and don't steal my new originals... okay so that sounded weird you still know what I mean.
Summary: Hannah's settled down. She has a good life, a good family, and a normal way that things are run. So what would happen if her past caught up to her? And how will she react when the one person she's tried to forget shows up at her door? (Well technically her door)
P10
IN A SMALL HOUSE IN A SMALL TOWN OUTSIDE THE CITY
Hannah hummed to herself as she closed the oven door and turned on the timer. She moved around the kitchen gracefully fixing dinner with the utmost finesse. When everything was on to boil or in to cook she nodded and headed toward the living room.
She glanced around at everything. The light purple drapes complimented the dark blue and light wooded furniture and she smiled. She plucked an old sock off of the floor murmuring something about Taylor never picking up his stuff. She straightened some of the cushions pulling a doll out from behind one of them. Her smile widened.
"Lizz!" She called. A little girl with dark tresses came bounding down the hall.
"Mommy you found Maxxy!" She exclaimed grabbing the doll out of her mother's hands and then flinging herself around her legs almost toppling Hannah over.
Hannah laughed, a tinkling laugh that floated about the room. She seemed to be the picture perfect mother of three. In her early forties with a few gray hairs penetrating her golden ringlets now. Her eyes were still shining brightly and they still set off her hair. No one would ever have guessed that she grew up in a compound for genetically engineered killing machines and busted out killing people to stay out as a preteen.
"Yep. Now you have to do me a favor." Lizz looked up seriously into her mother's smiling eyes.
"Yes Mommy. I'll pick up my room now." And then she turned to go back to her room.
"No." Hannah laughed. "That's not what I was going to ask you to do. I need you to go out and get Taylor and Tanya and then see if Grandpa Logan or Grandpa Zack need anything."
"Okay Mommy!" Lizz cried already changing her course to charge out the door after the twins.
Hannah set about straightening the house and tending to dinner and it wasn't long before she heard the door swing open again.
"Lizz can you come here please?" She called not looking up from the stove as she did. She heard footsteps coming toward the kitchen and a moment later there were strong competant arms encircling her waist.
"Lizz isn't available. Will I do?"
"Oh Aren. You tease!" She giggled wildly, she was still every bit a teenager in personality, except when it came to her children.
"Mmmm smells good." He said gesturing to the stove.
"Would you like a taste?" She asked him.
"Why of course." He answered starting to pick up a fork.
"No." She said gently taking the fork from him and laying it down on the counter again. "See it's still kind of strong so..." She didn't finish the sentence, she just closed the distance between their lips.
"Hmm definitely not bad." He said when they broke off. "A bit sweet, the kiss I mean." He teased.
"Oh it could be sweeter." They kissed again but mid kiss there came a groan. Hannah broke off and glanced around to find Taylor and his friend Michael standing at the door to the kitchen.
"Hello Mike." Aren said heartily letting go of Hannah.
"Hello Mike." Hannah repeated.
"Hello Mr. Manticora. Mrs. Manticora." He added.
"Taylor we'll be having dinner in about ten minutes." Hannah told him.
"Hey Mom can Mike stay for dinner?" He asked excitedly.
Hannah exchanged a glance with Aren and then smiled.
"It's Spring Break of course he can stay." Hannah told them.
"Alright." Both Taylor and Mike exclaimed together giving each other high fives.
"But." Hannah added.
"Oh here it comes." Taylor muttered.
"Only if its okay with his mother. The phone's right over there." Hannah directed Mike to the phone as though he didn't already know.
Taylor and Mike had been best friends for ten years and they had lived there for longer than that. Why Taylor had been born in this house. It was a nice house, large and spacious but it still managed, under Hannah's guiding hand, to stay homey and cozy.
"Mommy!" Lizz said bounding into the kitchen past Taylor and Mike though she had to squeeze through. "Gramps and Gramp want to know when dinner's gonna be on." She announced smiling.
"Tell them to start on in, it's almost on the table." She replied with a motherly smile. Lizz had just turned eight and she was the sweetest little girl. As Lizz bounded out Mike hung up the phone.
"My mom says it's okay but I have to invite Taylor to spend the night." He grinned as he said it, but Hannah knew that it was definitely something that his mother would say.
"It's up to Taylor." Hannah replied.
"Alright!" Taylor and Mike cheered again giving each other high fives.
"But." Hannah added.
"Here it comes." Mike and Taylor muttered together hiding grins.
"You have to set the table." Hannah finished pointing toward the stack of plates and silverware sitting on the counter beside her. Taylor and Mike groaned but picked up the stuff, grabbed another setting and headed for the dining room to set the big table.
As soon as they were gone they were replaced by Tanya and her friend Isobel. Isobel nudged Tanya and Tanya nudged Isobel and then Isobel nudged Tanya again. Finally Tanya stepped forward and spoke.
"Mom I was wondering if Isobel could stay for dinner and spend the night." She breathed. Tanya had always been shy, even around her mother, she was quiet, studious and extremely responsible. Isobel however was always ready for adventure, loud, bold and always into some mischief. Hannah smiled realizing the extreme difference between the two.
'Just like Maia and I.' She mused mentally.
"Hannah earth to Hannah." Aren snapped his fingers in front of her face.
"What? Oh. Of course, if it's okay with Maia." She added.
"We'll go and ask." Tanya agreed grabbing Isobel's hand and yanking her out of the kitchen.
Hannah was so glad that Maia and Isobel had moved into the house next door. They'd moved in five years ago and Hannah and Maia had gotten closer. Plus their daughters were best friends, born on the same day, in the same year, at the same time (well hour anyway).
All in all Hannah had a pretty normal life. Both her fathers lived with her, she had three children, a wonderful husband who shared every detail of her past and her best friend since childhood lived next door. There was only one thing missing, her mother had never returned.
Some nights Hannah lay awake long after Aren had drifted off (which wasn't too unusual since she didn't really need as much sleep anyway) and tried to picture Max in her mind. She had one real picture of her etched in her mind. The dark hair, the deep eyes, the perfectly tanned skin. She looked more like Zack than Max, she definitely saw no resemblance between her and her mother. That made it a little easier to forget, but not much.
Hannah took the food and another place setting out to the table and then called everyone to the table. Soon all the places were filled. Nine people around one table all calling for someone to pass this or that. Everyone talked and laughed and it was almost as if the pulse had never hit.
Well it had been over forty years since it had struck, about fifty or so to be exact. Sure there were a lot of developments but there still weren't any dot com businesses and if you even asked anyone if they had the internet the answer would most likely be no. Hell, no one really even had any computers anymore. Hannah had insisted that they get one, they'd scrounged and scrimped and finally managed to pull in enough money to buy a computer with a printer for the kids to do homework on and for Hannah to write her novels on. She was an accomplished author, which was something hard to become after the pulse hit.
They were just getting desert on the table when Hannah heard a crash in the living room. She motioned for Aren to stay there and then headed out into the living room. There in the dark was a figure. Hannah moved her hand along the wall and flicked on the light ready to fight if the person came after her.
There was no need to fight. For there beside the door, stooping down to sweep up the remains of a small vase was a sixty or so year old Max. Hannah let out a cry. She didn't know if it was a joyous cry, a sad cry, a surprised cry or a cry of sheer pain as all the hurt and happiness swam to the surface of her mind, she just knew that she cried out and then fainted.
She woke to find herself in her bed with Aren staring down at her looking worried. She'd never fainted before and for a moment she couldn't figure out what had happened.
"Lay still." Aren whispered as she tried to sit up. "Taylor's at Mike's, Tanya and Isobel are in her room, Lizz is in bed and your parents are all in the living room talking.
Hannah's mind was swimming and for a moment she was afraid she was going to black out again, thankfully she didn't. She lay there for a moment before sitting up and starting to walk down the hall to the living room. She stopped at the end of the hall and looked into the living room. Logan and Max were on the couch and Zack sat in an armchair across from it. As she entered the room Zack motioned her to another of the armchairs.
"You shouldn't be up." He told her.
"Nonsense I'm fine." But there was none of her usual vibrancy in her voice. She sat and watched Aren lower himself into another chair beside her. She stared across at the couch cushion for a moment before yanking her eyes up to stare into Max's eyes.
"Hannah..." Max started.
"Don't talk." Hannah said motioning with her hand as though she were a conductor cutting off the music. "Max. I don't want you here." Hannah said and then she barged on before Max could say anything. "It'll be better for me and my children to not have to deal with your shit. I don't want them to deal with what I've had to deal with."
"Hannah I know I hurt you. But I had to leave. I just couldn't stay here and face all of you after being gone. I thought that now, now that you're a woman you could deal with it better and so could I. Maybe I was wrong, but I don't want to be. Hannah I'd like to try to be a part of your life." Max finished.
"I don't know if I'm ready yet."
"Well hon I'm not getting any younger and neither are you. We have to start sometime. We can't keep procrastinating forever, can we?" Max added lightly, but the words held so much meaning that they almost knocked Hannah over. Her mother wanted in again. Could she handle it? Did she want to handle it? Finally Hannah stared hard into Max's eyes and spoke to Aren.
"Aren dear, why don't we let Mom stay in Taylor's room for the night. We'll have to fix up a better arrangement later of course but for one night you should be able to survive the mess that is Taylor." Hannah stood up and crossed to Max, who also stood up.
They hugged and then Hannah pulled away.
"You have a lot to make up for you know." Hannah told her. "You never did buy me a Barbie Doll."
"And I hope I never have to."
Then they started down the hall toward Taylor's room and Hannah knew somewhere in the back of her mind, or maybe more in her heart, that everything would work out, and maybe, just maybe, things would be normal once more as they should have been all along.
________________________________________________________
END NOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry folks that's IT!!!!! I'm letting Hannah go. I'm giving her a burial and all, may she rest in peace. Okay so I'm corny! LEAVE ME ALONE!
I know it's a pretty crappy ending but I didn't want to end it in the first place. Actually I didn't want to write it in the first place.
*Don't stare at me like that... At least hear me out before you let your jaw drop that far toward the floor!*
I was talking to KaiaKyshal in school and she was trying to come up with a story plot for DA, she couldn't think anything up so I suggested something with Max's kid. She rejected it but I started to picture Max's daughter. Hence Hannah was born in my mind... so everyone who likes this story thank KaiaKyshal and read her stories to show your gratitude. And to those of you who don't like this story...
Deal and move on Boos!
Thank you for all your support in this effort of mine to become somewhat known on FF.N!
Love Yas,
Laila*Lucine
Summary: Hannah's settled down. She has a good life, a good family, and a normal way that things are run. So what would happen if her past caught up to her? And how will she react when the one person she's tried to forget shows up at her door? (Well technically her door)
P10
IN A SMALL HOUSE IN A SMALL TOWN OUTSIDE THE CITY
Hannah hummed to herself as she closed the oven door and turned on the timer. She moved around the kitchen gracefully fixing dinner with the utmost finesse. When everything was on to boil or in to cook she nodded and headed toward the living room.
She glanced around at everything. The light purple drapes complimented the dark blue and light wooded furniture and she smiled. She plucked an old sock off of the floor murmuring something about Taylor never picking up his stuff. She straightened some of the cushions pulling a doll out from behind one of them. Her smile widened.
"Lizz!" She called. A little girl with dark tresses came bounding down the hall.
"Mommy you found Maxxy!" She exclaimed grabbing the doll out of her mother's hands and then flinging herself around her legs almost toppling Hannah over.
Hannah laughed, a tinkling laugh that floated about the room. She seemed to be the picture perfect mother of three. In her early forties with a few gray hairs penetrating her golden ringlets now. Her eyes were still shining brightly and they still set off her hair. No one would ever have guessed that she grew up in a compound for genetically engineered killing machines and busted out killing people to stay out as a preteen.
"Yep. Now you have to do me a favor." Lizz looked up seriously into her mother's smiling eyes.
"Yes Mommy. I'll pick up my room now." And then she turned to go back to her room.
"No." Hannah laughed. "That's not what I was going to ask you to do. I need you to go out and get Taylor and Tanya and then see if Grandpa Logan or Grandpa Zack need anything."
"Okay Mommy!" Lizz cried already changing her course to charge out the door after the twins.
Hannah set about straightening the house and tending to dinner and it wasn't long before she heard the door swing open again.
"Lizz can you come here please?" She called not looking up from the stove as she did. She heard footsteps coming toward the kitchen and a moment later there were strong competant arms encircling her waist.
"Lizz isn't available. Will I do?"
"Oh Aren. You tease!" She giggled wildly, she was still every bit a teenager in personality, except when it came to her children.
"Mmmm smells good." He said gesturing to the stove.
"Would you like a taste?" She asked him.
"Why of course." He answered starting to pick up a fork.
"No." She said gently taking the fork from him and laying it down on the counter again. "See it's still kind of strong so..." She didn't finish the sentence, she just closed the distance between their lips.
"Hmm definitely not bad." He said when they broke off. "A bit sweet, the kiss I mean." He teased.
"Oh it could be sweeter." They kissed again but mid kiss there came a groan. Hannah broke off and glanced around to find Taylor and his friend Michael standing at the door to the kitchen.
"Hello Mike." Aren said heartily letting go of Hannah.
"Hello Mike." Hannah repeated.
"Hello Mr. Manticora. Mrs. Manticora." He added.
"Taylor we'll be having dinner in about ten minutes." Hannah told him.
"Hey Mom can Mike stay for dinner?" He asked excitedly.
Hannah exchanged a glance with Aren and then smiled.
"It's Spring Break of course he can stay." Hannah told them.
"Alright." Both Taylor and Mike exclaimed together giving each other high fives.
"But." Hannah added.
"Oh here it comes." Taylor muttered.
"Only if its okay with his mother. The phone's right over there." Hannah directed Mike to the phone as though he didn't already know.
Taylor and Mike had been best friends for ten years and they had lived there for longer than that. Why Taylor had been born in this house. It was a nice house, large and spacious but it still managed, under Hannah's guiding hand, to stay homey and cozy.
"Mommy!" Lizz said bounding into the kitchen past Taylor and Mike though she had to squeeze through. "Gramps and Gramp want to know when dinner's gonna be on." She announced smiling.
"Tell them to start on in, it's almost on the table." She replied with a motherly smile. Lizz had just turned eight and she was the sweetest little girl. As Lizz bounded out Mike hung up the phone.
"My mom says it's okay but I have to invite Taylor to spend the night." He grinned as he said it, but Hannah knew that it was definitely something that his mother would say.
"It's up to Taylor." Hannah replied.
"Alright!" Taylor and Mike cheered again giving each other high fives.
"But." Hannah added.
"Here it comes." Mike and Taylor muttered together hiding grins.
"You have to set the table." Hannah finished pointing toward the stack of plates and silverware sitting on the counter beside her. Taylor and Mike groaned but picked up the stuff, grabbed another setting and headed for the dining room to set the big table.
As soon as they were gone they were replaced by Tanya and her friend Isobel. Isobel nudged Tanya and Tanya nudged Isobel and then Isobel nudged Tanya again. Finally Tanya stepped forward and spoke.
"Mom I was wondering if Isobel could stay for dinner and spend the night." She breathed. Tanya had always been shy, even around her mother, she was quiet, studious and extremely responsible. Isobel however was always ready for adventure, loud, bold and always into some mischief. Hannah smiled realizing the extreme difference between the two.
'Just like Maia and I.' She mused mentally.
"Hannah earth to Hannah." Aren snapped his fingers in front of her face.
"What? Oh. Of course, if it's okay with Maia." She added.
"We'll go and ask." Tanya agreed grabbing Isobel's hand and yanking her out of the kitchen.
Hannah was so glad that Maia and Isobel had moved into the house next door. They'd moved in five years ago and Hannah and Maia had gotten closer. Plus their daughters were best friends, born on the same day, in the same year, at the same time (well hour anyway).
All in all Hannah had a pretty normal life. Both her fathers lived with her, she had three children, a wonderful husband who shared every detail of her past and her best friend since childhood lived next door. There was only one thing missing, her mother had never returned.
Some nights Hannah lay awake long after Aren had drifted off (which wasn't too unusual since she didn't really need as much sleep anyway) and tried to picture Max in her mind. She had one real picture of her etched in her mind. The dark hair, the deep eyes, the perfectly tanned skin. She looked more like Zack than Max, she definitely saw no resemblance between her and her mother. That made it a little easier to forget, but not much.
Hannah took the food and another place setting out to the table and then called everyone to the table. Soon all the places were filled. Nine people around one table all calling for someone to pass this or that. Everyone talked and laughed and it was almost as if the pulse had never hit.
Well it had been over forty years since it had struck, about fifty or so to be exact. Sure there were a lot of developments but there still weren't any dot com businesses and if you even asked anyone if they had the internet the answer would most likely be no. Hell, no one really even had any computers anymore. Hannah had insisted that they get one, they'd scrounged and scrimped and finally managed to pull in enough money to buy a computer with a printer for the kids to do homework on and for Hannah to write her novels on. She was an accomplished author, which was something hard to become after the pulse hit.
They were just getting desert on the table when Hannah heard a crash in the living room. She motioned for Aren to stay there and then headed out into the living room. There in the dark was a figure. Hannah moved her hand along the wall and flicked on the light ready to fight if the person came after her.
There was no need to fight. For there beside the door, stooping down to sweep up the remains of a small vase was a sixty or so year old Max. Hannah let out a cry. She didn't know if it was a joyous cry, a sad cry, a surprised cry or a cry of sheer pain as all the hurt and happiness swam to the surface of her mind, she just knew that she cried out and then fainted.
She woke to find herself in her bed with Aren staring down at her looking worried. She'd never fainted before and for a moment she couldn't figure out what had happened.
"Lay still." Aren whispered as she tried to sit up. "Taylor's at Mike's, Tanya and Isobel are in her room, Lizz is in bed and your parents are all in the living room talking.
Hannah's mind was swimming and for a moment she was afraid she was going to black out again, thankfully she didn't. She lay there for a moment before sitting up and starting to walk down the hall to the living room. She stopped at the end of the hall and looked into the living room. Logan and Max were on the couch and Zack sat in an armchair across from it. As she entered the room Zack motioned her to another of the armchairs.
"You shouldn't be up." He told her.
"Nonsense I'm fine." But there was none of her usual vibrancy in her voice. She sat and watched Aren lower himself into another chair beside her. She stared across at the couch cushion for a moment before yanking her eyes up to stare into Max's eyes.
"Hannah..." Max started.
"Don't talk." Hannah said motioning with her hand as though she were a conductor cutting off the music. "Max. I don't want you here." Hannah said and then she barged on before Max could say anything. "It'll be better for me and my children to not have to deal with your shit. I don't want them to deal with what I've had to deal with."
"Hannah I know I hurt you. But I had to leave. I just couldn't stay here and face all of you after being gone. I thought that now, now that you're a woman you could deal with it better and so could I. Maybe I was wrong, but I don't want to be. Hannah I'd like to try to be a part of your life." Max finished.
"I don't know if I'm ready yet."
"Well hon I'm not getting any younger and neither are you. We have to start sometime. We can't keep procrastinating forever, can we?" Max added lightly, but the words held so much meaning that they almost knocked Hannah over. Her mother wanted in again. Could she handle it? Did she want to handle it? Finally Hannah stared hard into Max's eyes and spoke to Aren.
"Aren dear, why don't we let Mom stay in Taylor's room for the night. We'll have to fix up a better arrangement later of course but for one night you should be able to survive the mess that is Taylor." Hannah stood up and crossed to Max, who also stood up.
They hugged and then Hannah pulled away.
"You have a lot to make up for you know." Hannah told her. "You never did buy me a Barbie Doll."
"And I hope I never have to."
Then they started down the hall toward Taylor's room and Hannah knew somewhere in the back of her mind, or maybe more in her heart, that everything would work out, and maybe, just maybe, things would be normal once more as they should have been all along.
________________________________________________________
END NOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry folks that's IT!!!!! I'm letting Hannah go. I'm giving her a burial and all, may she rest in peace. Okay so I'm corny! LEAVE ME ALONE!
I know it's a pretty crappy ending but I didn't want to end it in the first place. Actually I didn't want to write it in the first place.
*Don't stare at me like that... At least hear me out before you let your jaw drop that far toward the floor!*
I was talking to KaiaKyshal in school and she was trying to come up with a story plot for DA, she couldn't think anything up so I suggested something with Max's kid. She rejected it but I started to picture Max's daughter. Hence Hannah was born in my mind... so everyone who likes this story thank KaiaKyshal and read her stories to show your gratitude. And to those of you who don't like this story...
Deal and move on Boos!
Thank you for all your support in this effort of mine to become somewhat known on FF.N!
Love Yas,
Laila*Lucine